Vanilla Mist
by Namilaa
Summary: TWO-SHOT. They first met as simply childhood friends in a sandbox. But soon, a lovesick-heartbreak cycle begins to form as chance just can't seem to call it quits . SORA.KAIRI . A pair of star-crossed lovers take their life


_So, ive been lacking in postage lately. And i decided to post this earlier in the story time frame than i planned. Hence, a two shot was created. Go figure. I suppose it rises suspense? Enjoy, ive been slaving over this since...well, forever. I dont think i will ever make another single chapter this long. However, next chapter may prove other wise. I'll just let you know it was very painful to make it this long. Those of you who know my updating progress and chapter length would understand this. Haha. Enjoy, and for god-sakes review, not just fave._

-

-.V a n i ll a M i s t.-

.Sora._Kairi._

Chapter One of Two: _Good Things_

-

I first met him at the age of six.

It had been one of those average days in Radiant Garden. You know, how it always was during the later days of a sticky-hot summer. The sun had been shining luminously over the scorched playground. The basketballs courts were simmering, the grass felt sticky and odd, but the small little sandbox that I had been playing in alone was still nice and cool. I remember running my fingers through the torn up sand, giggling. I had my oh-so in fashion Barbie doll, thinking up a beach scene for the sporty diva. I had bitten my lip, realizing I needed water to complete my image.

Scarlet pigtails bouncing, I quickly stood up and wiped the sand off of my cotton dress and ran towards the water fountain with a bucket in hand. I reached the stainless steel machine, and stared up at in wonder. I couldn't reach it, I realized, and my head dropped. I quickly looked around for my mother, and spotted her talking to a friend on a bench a way away. I knew better not to disturb her when she was talking. Brother? I bit my lip, he wouldn't help me, he would probably just laugh at me in front of his friends.

My brother Roxas could be mean sometimes, I remember. Being ten years old at the time, he thought that he was extra cool because he had a two digit age. But he wasn't always like that.

But then I turned around and I saw a person standing in front of the blazing sun, casting a vast, spiked shadow over me. Then, the person said, "Hi, I'm Sora." But being six years old, I just blinked at the person in front of me. To this day I still remember the first thing I said to him. And to this day I still regret asking him that question.

"Are you a girl?"

He didn't say anything at first, but he stepped out of his own little solar eclipse, and me finally being able to see his face, he raised his dark eyebrows.

"Ew! Why would I even _want_ to be a girl?" he asked, putting on a pouty face; a face I will never and have never forgotten. This boy had odd, spiky brown hair (another topic I never let up on questioning), large blue eyes, and was a good few inches taller than me. But of course, I barely noticed any of these features at the time.

"I don't know," I shrugged with much animation, seriously pondering on this question, "but do you think you can help me get water in this bucket. I'm too short, and Barbie needs to have a beach party with Ken. It's an emergency!"

The boy looked at me for a second, thinking deeply about this _obviously_ desperate situation. "Well, I really don't like her in a beach scene, but just 'cuz you have no one else to help you, I will!" We both smiled, becoming friends from that moment on for the summer. Him, with his boyish sense of justice and grossness, and I, with my hot-headed and girlish ideas, didn't even realize that only in a two month's time would he move away again. And just in time before my twin sister died, a dreadful time in my life, and a time when all I wanted was a friend. And that was also the first time I missed him, the time when I stood over my sister's pearly white grave with my family and grieved.

And so it went. We would be separated, only to be forgotten for a short amount of time until we met again. And this frustrating cycle seemed to occur several times in our lives. It was like a chain that could not break, glass that could not shatter, and it engulfed us. We didn't know what was in store for us in the future, and it didn't even seem pass our minds once that we might see each other again. But then again, we didn't know too much at the time.

The years went by and sixth grade came around. This was, of course, the golden years of young lives. Sixth graders were known to be the top, the best, the _kings_ of elementary school. And oh, was I excited about the first day of school. You see, my best friend Olette and I had been preparing for that day all summer. We had gone shopping together with our mothers to buy new and cute school clothes, gone to the beach every-other day hoping for even the glimmer of a tan, and even saved up on money to buy make-up for later in the year, when our mothers would finally let us wear it. We were so excited, so _determined _to finally turn the tables of our non-existent social lives. Perhaps this year, we would attract the attention of the twelve year-old heartthrob Seifer, and plunge ourselves into ultimate popularity.

Ah, were we naïve. And not even naïve to the fact that, as our parents said, "popularity doesn't matter, be yourself" business. But only, and only to the fact that only one of us would make it to that goal.

So with our new non-roller backpacks (because _everyone _knew that once you hit sixth grade, roller back-packs were extremely un-cool), we strolled into classroom 23 with high hopes and jingling lunch money in our purses (because by then, packed lunches were out as well). With hugs, screams, and smiles, our small little class greeted each other with complements of new haircuts or the steam-ironed clothes pre-planned the week before. This was our chance, it just had to be.

As we were assigned to perspective desks, I found myself lucky enough to be to the right of Olette, and in the back of Seifer. I remember blushing at these thoughts of Seifer, and how lucky I was to stare at the back of his head. The person behind me was someone I didn't know that well at the time, and the person to my right was a boy I hadn't seen before. A boy with spiky brown hair and a goofy-set smile. I remember blinking, not being able to look away from him. He reminded me of someone, someone from a long time ago. But I couldn't quite get it.

That is, until he turned my way, greeting my stare. Then, my mind clicked. And judging by his facial expression, he felt it too. He was supposed to be gone, I remember thinking. Just a childhood friend. But there he was right next to me, staring at me equally as bewildered as I was. Suddenly, I realized, this year was not going to go as I had planned at all.

"Kairi?" I remembered him saying to me. I made a large smile for him, one that seemed to cover my whole face that I only did every once in a while. And so, everything _was_ different. I temporarily forgot about Seifer, and not so temporarily forgot about Olette. You see, through the next couple of months, Sora and I seemed to sky-rocket up to popularity, as my old brunette best friend only seemed to shrink. But me, being stupid and selfish, and well, _young_, let go of _that _chapter of my life and continued onwards, not looking back.

Sora and I had experimented a lot together as we journeyed through this new concept of 'popularity', and what it was to be cool. We became the best of friends again, and caught up about all the time that we were apart. I told him about the death of my sick sister, and he went into detail about every place he moved around to with his mother.

As experimenting went, Sora and I had our first alcoholic drink, experienced our first kiss with other popular people, and thinking that we were 'better' than the not-so-cool kids. Sora seemed to have not picked up on the idea of making fun of and gossiping about the other kids. I, however, thrived for it. I lived it, I breathed it. My pre-teen bitch phase was in over drive, and I couldn't seem to just hit the brakes. I had spread rumors, pulled hilarious pranks, and terrorized the nerds, including my old friend Olette. I quickly became the queen-bee of the twelve year olds. And I loved it. Or…at least I thought I did.

But I wasn't a total bitch. Only when I was with my cool friends was I like this. But on those late-night talks and garden walks with Sora, did I go back to normal unconsciously. Those were the most memorable times of my younger years. I could be myself without anyone watching me. And perhaps that was my problem; I hid my true self from everyone but Sora. I was scared. Scared of what people thought of me so much, I was willing to do things against my original judgment. It was a sin, it was a drug.

I remember that winter break clearly. It was the turn of the millennium, possibly being the most important winter of anyone's lives. And that also meant the largest party of our lives.

I remember having a conversation with my mother, trying to persuade her to let me do my own thing that New Year's Eve, and break away from the tradition of a family barbeque. I had said that Olette was having a few friends over for TV, movies, and a sleepover at her house, and that she needn't worry about me. I was going to be fine. But of course, she not knowing _anything_ about my social status, and believed that I was still best friends with Olette. I remember smiling in triumph as I walked out of the kitchen that day. What a lie. Seifer was a actually having a huge "party" at his deserted house, and I was to sleepover for the night in order to hide the possibility of alcohol in my breath if I went home.

I had gotten dressed in tight jeans, and shiny, oh-so pre-teen silver clinging top, and a large hoodie to hide it all from my mother. Once I reached the checkpoint of Larxene's house, I got properly dressed, layered my self with a nice amount of makeup, and headed out the door with semi-high heels. It was going to be an amazing night.

By the time we arrived there, it was already ten o'clock, and the party was thriving. To tell the truth, it wasn't actually much of a party, looking back. Just a bunch of popular kids hanging out in the living room drinking Coca-Cola, and for those little pre-teen daredevils, with rum. I met up with Sora, and a few drinks later, it was almost time for the count-down. But a good twenty minutes before that, Sora and I walked outside to the garden. I was happy about it, too. I needed a break from all that stuffiness of the party. And as I stepped outside into the night, I still remember the unusual serenity of those twenty minutes of my life. It could have been the small amount of rum I consumed, but I remember the moon being especially bright that night. The flowers and plants were unnaturally still, basking mystically in the cool moonlight. All that could be heard was the murmur of conversation of the parties from inside, and the quiet dripping of the water fountain.

"Hey Kairi, I havent talked to you in a while." he had said to me quietly, looking up at the moon as we walked along; his eyes glittering oddly. I remember a swishing sensation wash through me as I watched him. My eyes had widened at the feeling. It was the first of many.

Recovering myself, I said smiling up at him, "Oh yeah, I know. Well, with all that drama with Seifer and everything, I guess I've been busy." Truth be told, I was actually totally head-over-heels in love with Seifer; or so I thought at the time. I had talked about him so much to Sora, him being one of my best friends and all, and how we were so close so actually being a couple. It was something I thought I wanted since the fourth grade.

"Oh, right…" he mumbled, shoving his hands in his pockets as we continued to circle the garden. I looked up at him again. He had changed a lot since I had met him at the age of six. He was obviously much taller now, and his cerulean eyes seemed to only grow with beauty and knowledge. He still had quite a big of baby fat, but he was skinnier than most of the kids in the class. His hair was spikier and more defined, but they were not to its peek. I remember squinting my eyes at him.

"Why, is something wrong, Sora?" I asked, not taking my eyes off of him. Why was he acting so weird? Why was he being so quiet? I was still pretty naïve.

"Do you ever wish," he said lamely, taking in a long breath, but not meeting my eye, "that life was like it was before? Like, you know, when we were little kids, and everything was so simple?" We continued to walk into the unfound corners of Seifer's garden.

A silence pressed. I squinted my eyes again. "What do you mean?"

He shrugged his shoulders boyishly. We were walking slower now, and for some reason I was getting anxious about what he was going to say.

"Well," he said slowly, carefully, "when there was no popularity or being cool. But, you know, just playing around with Barbie's in the sandbox." I subsided a smile, but I could see he was not holding it back.

"What …do you mean?" I asked again.

"You've changed Kairi." He quickly said. I stopped my walking as he turned around towards me. I continued to stare at him. He was getting nervous. _Everyone _got nervous from my special stare. He fumbled back with his words "Well-well, you know what I mean…you and I were so carefree those years ago, and also at the beginning of this year. But lately…you've kind of gotten sucked up in this whole popularity thing." he said this only semi-confidently. The thing about Sora, the thing I admired, was that when he really wanted to, his sense of justice and steadfastness that was _just_ beginning to show was unbreakable. He felt strongly about most of his words. And at that moment, I got scared. My walls went up, and my head began to flare. I felt like I was being cornered, a small mouse in the mercy of a hungry kitten. And I did what I only knew how to; lash out. To this day, I still don't know why I reacted so violently.

"Well who are you to analyze me? Things change over the years. I'm not the little girl I was; _no one _is the person they were years ago." my mind was racing along with my words. But he did not move, he did not flinch. And this frustrated me. I decided to take it a step further.

"And why do you care, anyways?! You're just jealous, aren't you?! Well I'm sorry if your not with your old girlfriend anymore, but I have Seifer. " I made up wildly, shoving all this up his nose as I stepped closer to him, glaring. He glared steadily back, wavering slightly from her words. I quickly turned away from him.

"Well, uhh…I guess you're right for once, I am kinda jealous."

"_Ten, nine, eight, seven…"_

I quickly whipped around, staring incredulously at him. His eyes were directed towards the ground boyishly. But his eyes were steady, strong; backing up very word that he uttered from his lips. You could call this the moment of truth, the climax point in the story. But to me, it was only the beginning, and we were just getting a taste of what was truly coming ahead of us.

"I kinda like you, Kai."

"…_six, five, four, three, two…"_

We didn't know it then, but that was the turning point in our lives. It was a point, a moment that only lasted for about twenty seconds. And it was odd to think about it, how suddenly someone's feelings, emotions, and life could change in such a short span of time. How, after that moment, each event afterwards was laid out carefully in front of us. There was no turning back. No more.

"_ONE!"_

And what happened next was one of the few decisions in my life that I praised. It was the moment when he stepped closer and kissed me, very timidly, very hesitantly. It was barely a kiss, but perhaps that was what made it all the more magical, at least in my young mind. And I made that decision. I could have turned away, broken that first kiss and never looked him in the eyes again. But I let him kiss me, and I kissed him back carefully. Later I wonder if the latter decision would have been the right one. My life would be drastically different. All the pain, the frustration, and the heart-break would be instantly gone.

But none of that even phased me that night in Seifer's garden. Because I was his, after that turn of events, and happiness was all I saw in the future.

Oh, how wrong I was.

-

The kiss in the seconds of the new millennium. Surely, it meant peace, prosperity, and happiness with the person you kissed for the next one hundred years. At least, according to tradition.

Sora moved again about a month later; a week before Valentine's Day. His mother was offered a 'bigger and better' job somewhere in a place called Twilight Town. My young, stupid heart was broken, and I soon felt alone. (But what I didn't realize then was the _true _essence of a broke heart.) I was sad, I was tired. And soon, I didn't find myself with my usual popular group as often as I used to with Sora. Even with about a month of carefree, nervous, and awkward attention from Sora, afterward was painful. Or at least what I _thought_ was painful.

I almost completely went back to normal about a month after he left. However, the fact that he had left just a week before Valentine's Day still stung in the slightest. I wasn't doing as much 'activities' with the popular group, but we still remained very great friends. What a lot of people didn't understand about popularity, I realized, was that they weren't all heartless, cold, bitches. But in reality, there were actually close bonds between many. And not even the fake, 'I'm only your friend because you and I are cool', but a valid friendship. There were, of course, some bad apples in the basket. Larxene proved to be not such a nice person, and I made sure not too get too close to her in the first place. But two girls named Selphie and Yuffie were, as most would put it, my best friends. Sure, Selphie tended to gossip way too much for her own good, and Yuffie was a little too loud in public places, but really, was anyone perfect? Even as popular are we were?

Ah, sixth grade was a timely age. And one that I may never forget. But time flashed by and soon middle school, and the most part of high school had blown past me. I was still in the 'in' crowd, and I was relatively happy where I was. The whole immature 'I'm so popular' thing died down in my eyes after my last year of elementary school, and by Senior year, I was well liked and respected throughout the school. I had dated my fair share of guys through this six year period of puberty and maturity, and I had yet to fall in love with any of the myriad of boys. Sure, I didn't really expect to, but, even if I didn't think so, considering eighteen years of age was right around the corner, I was still young and hopeful for something even related to love.

I barely thought about Sora through this time period. The pain and the 'heartbreak' was mended and healed to its rightful health, and when I occasionally thought of him, he was just some boy in the past. Never to surface again.

Ah, was I wrong. Again.

It was barely a few weeks after the first day of Senior year when I saw him again. It was the traditional Selphie-and-Kairi shopping trip of October the first. Since the seventh grade, we had made it some kind of habit of going the exact same day to the exact same mall every beginning of the year. The first time was a spur of the moment, the second was a coincidence, and by the third we had set it as a full fledged tradition; not matter what.

"Selphie, can you drive _any_ slower?" I asked exasperatedly, my painted-trim nails drumming the plastic arm rest of the other girl's car in aggravation. I adjusted my seating and then shot a glare toward the girl. For such a loud and hyper girl, she sure did drive slowly.

"Oh Kairi, safety first! I'd rather not die before we hit those fantastic sales…I've been saving up for a month!" Selphie preached with confidence, her almond hair bouncing with every turn of her cautious head. Her hands were glued to the wheel, always ready to reach for the blinker or the brake. In my mind, she was a Driver's Ed wet dream. She stopped at stop signs completely with looking both ways multiples of times, she viewed her rear-view mirror as if her life depended on it, and she followed the speed limit religiously. Me? I was more of a speeding, flirt with the officer, and never have your parents find out kind of girl. Hey, you only lived once.

"Yeah, well, I just can't wait until we hit Victoria's Secret…I'm running dangerously low on bras and my pajamas are not warm enough anymore. And plus, I need to get another bottle of my perfume, so we'd better hit the perfume department of the mall as well, okay?" I said casually, the outside view reflecting on my dark brown aviators as I gazed out the window at the passing scenery.

Flicking the blinker on with a 'tic tic tic', Selphie replied, "Oh, you mean that old stuff that you've had since sixth grade? If I were you, I would just switch. Doesn't it get old?" The thing about me was that I held on to too many things for way too long. My room still had all my old stuffed animals from the age of five along with children's books lining my shelves. I was a packrat. Times did change I suppose.

"Yeah, but I like it! It has history. You know, I bet It would make a great story." I commented, not exactly paying attention to anything particular outside.

"Story? Oh, please Kairi. Stop trying to think up excuses for being such a knick-knack freak." Selphie countered.

"Well it was a Christmas present!"

"Uh, yeah, six years ago." Selphie said in an overly sarcastic tone.

"My mom gave it to me, and you know how she is." I tried to reason, becoming bored very quickly with the conversation.

"You're mom didn't give it to you, I remember. It was a friend of ours from sixth grade. Way to keep up with the memory banks, Kai." she said, smiling.

"Okay. Great. Can we talk about something else? This is pointless." I said, turning towards her. Selphie waved her hand at me dismissively as I propped up my feet on the dashboard. I cupped my hand around my face in boredom; my eyes out of focus.

I gasped. "Is that a pimple on my face? I feel something, but I can't tell." I said, my eyes narrowing on behalf of my troubling face.

"I can't really look at you right now. I'm dri-ving." Selphie said in a sing-song voice. I sighed, kicking my feet off of the dashboard and leaned forward as I slapped down the mirror after removing my glasses. Reminding me of how much life hated me, there it was, a reddish bump on my cheek. You know, the ones that you couldn't just get rid of because it actually _hurt_? Yeah, well that was on my face.

I quickly dug through my bag and pulled out come cover up and dotted it on my face. Once finished, I stared at my reflection. I had changed a lot since sixth grade, looking back. My hair was no longer fiery-red or short, but past shoulder length and a deep, auburn color. My face had lost virtually all of my baby fat, revealing nicely sculpted cheek bones and a dimple-less smile. My eyes, however, had only brightened and my height had reached about 5'6. I didn't wear much makeup, but I cringed at my reflection realizing that most of my mascara had worn off. After re-applying that, I was semi-satisfied and shut the mirror back to its place.

Time passed for a while, and my fingers continued to drum the pleather arm rest, glaring at nothing in particular. "Selphie, okay, seriously. If you don't drive any faster I'm jumping out of this car and walking. It would be faster, anyway." I had snapped at Selphie, who didn't even flinch. She must been used to my remarks by then. She just shook her head and clicked her tongue disapprovingly as she drove even slower; plunging even lower under the heavenly speed limit. I groaned in response.

In the distance I could see the mall looming into view. I made a sigh of relief. I really needed a shopping trip to get school out of my mind. Little did I know at the time, however, that the stress would only accumulate from there.

-

After visiting a variety of clothe stores and department stores, Selphie and I had decided to stop for lunch, and then continued afterward. However, full from the tuna melt I had eaten, I wasn't up for much more shopping. I had already had numerous bags slung around my aching wrists, and my shoes proved to not be the most comfortable.

"Ugh, Selphie, how much longer do you think we are going to keep this up?" I had asked as we sat on a random bench, massaging our ankles. Selphie looked around with large, emerald eyes.

"Wellll… I'm pretty much done, but don't you have to go to that 'special' perfume store to find that 'special' perfume?" she asked, searching through her bags lazily, as if reviewing what she had bought with ridiculous amounts of money. I bit my lip.

"Yeah, you're right. Lets go." I said, getting up suddenly and gathering my many bags in my hands.

"Wait…what? I thought we were gonna' rest for a while longer!" Selphie wailed childishly, glaring up at me as I put my shoes securely on.

"Well, I _really_ want to get out of here. I'm getting frustrated from all this shopping." I reasoned, putting my bag-filled hands on my hips. Selphie pouted and stood up without another word, probably agreeing silently. And so we had went on our way toward possibly the smallest store in all of the immensely huge mall. It was barely enough to call a store in fact. But it had all of the non-mainstream stuff in there. It had perfumes, lotions, and other items. Younger girls usually flocked that store, but mostly for the odd make-up and funky bath sponges.

Entering the tiny store, I immediately knew where to go. Grabbing the small maroon box, I headed for the counter, wallet in hand.

"Ah, yes, the _Vanilla Mist _perfume. Very nice choice, Kairi. But of course, you're practically the only person who buys it." the sales man winked. "You must wear it a lot. I would really like to smell it up close someday." But I just smiled at the owner's son politely, used to this by now, and took the plastic bag outside to meet Selphie. Doing all this while trying to stifle a laugh was very, very hard, by the way.

But just as I smiled, preparing to tell Selphie about the lame pick-up line that the boy had pulled on me this time, it suddenly crashed down just as fast as it had built up. An electric shock coursed throughout my body. My fingertips twitched in surprise and I could feel my heart beating loudly in my ear. _Bump, bump. _Adrenaline shot through my body and suddenly it became very hot in my head. And surely someone just dumped a cold bucket of water down my back.

That is, of course, because Selphie was standing in the middle of the hallway, talking to a certain spiked brunette.

_Bump, bump. _

I stood there, dazzled, soaking up this moment in case he would disappear behind the crowds mystically, proving that this was only my imagination. But it was not. He was really there. Sora.

He had gotten so much taller, probably scraping six feet and counting, I remember thinking. His hair had increased in volume and spikiness; dodging out into various directions with detail. It had lightened substantially as well, a more of a dark honey hue. His tantalizing eyes smiled along with his lips as he continued to talk to my friend. Neither had yet to notice me standing there a good way away, nor the approving looks at Sora from passing females.

_Bump, bump. _

My god had he gotten handsome.

And suddenly, without warning, as if he felt it inside his sheer bones, he turned to look at me. I felt myself jump at his stare, so wide and twinkling with joy inside those seas of blue. I blinked once. Twice.

_Bump, bump. Bump, bump. _

"Kairi?" he asked, his voice levitating with every syllable. Something clicked in my mind. That was him. That was Sora. But what stumped me the most at that time, was why it effected me so much.

_Bump, bump. _

A light daze swept over me as a smile erupt on my lips, covering almost my whole face. I'm sure he remembered that smile. "Sora!" I had called, jumping towards him and smothered him with a large hug. It felt so nice, to finally have him there. Actually there. He had laughed heartedly in my ear as he picked me up off the ground in delight. I shrieked softly as he did this; the smile never receding from my face.

I pulled back from him, hands still around his neck as we looked at each other, smiling. "Sora, I can't believe you're here!" I smiled, giving him another quick hug before stepping back to admire his height. He didn't leave my gaze as Selphie showed up next to us, putting an elbow on my shoulder happily.

"Sora, Sora, Sora…it's been a while hasn't it?" Selphie said up at him. He unlocked his steady gaze away from mine and turned to Selphie, sinking my heart only slightly.

"Yeah, yeah, I know right?" he said casually, never losing the soft smile playing at his lips. I gazed wondrously up at him.

"So why _are_ you here?" I asked finally after a few moments pause, my lips still turned up in the slightest. He turned back toward me and I felt myself jump again.

_Bump, bump. _

"Well, I guess you could say I've moved back." he said, looking from one to another. My stomach turned.

"You've moved…back?" I asked pensively, tearing my gaze away from him. I felt him nod. Selphie clapped her hands.

"Oh! For how long?" she asked excitedly, obviously pumped to see an old friend, and tell everyone about it. This time, he look down at me, his eyes steady with glitter.

"For a long time, I hope." he returned to a smile with these words, digging those eyes deep within my soul. I couldn't help but think he was directing this toward me. A while passed as we didn't break eye contact. The memories of our first kiss together, our old friendship, and our past lives flooded through my head as we didn't move. And I could tell he was thinking the same thing.

_Bump, bump. _

"Well," Selphie interrupted with a twinge of annoyance that I had overlooked at the time. Oh, how I wished I had picked up on it. "Come on Kairi, I think we should be heading home. All the shops are closing." she said, pulling at my arms softly. I quickly turned to her and smiled, nodding.

"W-wait, you guys are leaving?" Sora asked looked from one to another, dropping his hands from his former position of around the back of his head. I frowned.

"Yeah…you see I'm her ride and we have to head home soon--" Selphie smiled.

"Well, um, _Selphie_, I was thinking that maybe we could all re-cap on what's been going on with each other, hmm?" I said suggestively to the girl, imploring her silently with my eyes, willing her to play along.

"But Kai-- Oh, umm, sure! Why not? It should be fun!" she said hastily, laughing hurriedly at the end with a fixed smile, side glancing me. I took a quick glance at Sora, who was staring at me knowingly, slightly amused, as I shot Selphie another look.

"But…oh! Look at that, I almost forgot! Hmmph, I have a curfew for dinner. And, Sora you may not remember, but my mom can be quite strict on that sort of thing. Soo…why don't you kids go? I'll um…" she said, seriously 'forgetting' about her lying skills. I smiled gratefully at her as I turned to Sora.

"Yeah, you sure?" He asked politely, sticking his hands in his pockets lazily. I swallowed.

_Bump, bump. _

"Oh, of course!"

"Well, I have my car with me, so is it alright, Kairi, I can take you wherever and I drop you off at your house later?" he said, smiling gallantly down at me. I returned it.

"Only if it's okay with you." I said.

He smirked subtly. "Of course."

-

After dropping my bags off in Selphie's trunk, Sora and I watched as Selphie pulled out of the parking spot, and sourly drove away. I had figured that she was just bitter because I had ditched her for a guy.

I turned to Sora, re-adjusting my purse on my shoulder, and smiled up at him. "So, where should we catch up with each other?" He smiled as well and looked up towards the mild sky. "Well," he said, " we could drive over to that old playground we used to play at?" he said childishly.

I laughed, and then realizing something, and frowned. "Oh, well…they took it down a few years ago." I said, squinting my eyes at the low sun. He frowned as well, and looked around the semi-empty parking lot.

I quickly added, "Oh, but, um, there's still _a_ park there. It'll be nice." I hastily said. He nodded his head and then started walking toward the direction of his car. We walked for some time silently and I bit my lip. But soon, Sora came to a stop. I looked up from the ground and saw a gorgeous black Land Rover. I raised my eyebrows approvingly.

"Nice car." I commented as he walked ahead and, to my surprise, opened the door for me.

_Bump, bump. _

I laughed. "Hmm…Sora Hikari has manners? That's new." He smiled and rolled his eyes at me. "It comes with this gorgeous face." he laughed before closing the door for me. I bit my lip as I watched him walk around the front of the car and jumped into the black-on-black driving seat. We soon pulled out of the mall, and sped on into the highway. His driving tactics surprised me. He was going incredibly fast, but was maneuvering himself extremely well. It was scary to see how good of a driver he was, and even scarier to see how relaxed he seamed driving with only one arm. I wondered if he was showing off.

"So…" I said, gazing out the window after putting on my dark brown aviators, "why do you keep moving back here?"

Sora took a moment to answer, "I don't know. She's pretty unsettling when it comes to homes. I don't think she likes staying in one place for too long." he said, referring to his mom.

I thought for a moment. "Well do you like moving around a lot?" I asked, turning towards him. He side glanced at me before returning them back to the road.

"Well, it keeps bringing me back to you, doesn't it?" he said earnestly with an edge of something I hadn't expected. Who would have known that Sora Hikari could word himself so well? It seemed like a talent to him, looking back. And his practice later only got him better.

I smirked, "If you put it that way, then yeah." I said, not looking away from him. He turned to me for a few seconds, an amused and absolutely _gorgeous_ look on his face.

_Bump, bump. _

He soon pulled up into the small playground, which had been completely re-done into a castle-like design with draw bridges, slides, and swings. It was quite something, to be honest. We jumped out of the car and walked slowly toward the swing set and sat down. We moved back and forth for a while under a comfortable silence.

"A lot of things have changed, huh?" he said softly, turning his head toward me. I couldn't help but think that his words had a double meaning.

"I guess so." I smiled as he smiled back.

"But…why didn't you tell me you were coming back? Or what about the time that you have been here? You couldn't contact me or something?" I interrogated, an edge of anger in my words, even if I wasn't all that mad myself. However, he didn't even flinch. As if he was expecting this.

"Well, I go to a different high school than you…but I thought I would run into you sooner or later. It's not such a big town, Radiant Garden." he said to the floor, continuing to swing gracefully. I felt a little twinge of hurt in my chest, and I couldn't help but channel that into some kind of anger.

"I live in the same house, and have the same number." I said bluntly, the edges of my words rigid. I had expected him to make a witty retort back, or just roll his eyes at me. Something he had done all those years ago. But he didn't. He just looked at me and smiled, melting any kind of anger that I may have had. And ironically, that made me even madder, for a different reason now of course. His eyes were just too damn convincing. How was he able to do that? I looked away sourly and he laughed.

"Kairi, I see your temper hasn't changed that much." he said easily, tracing his feet in the dirt, edging dangerously close to mine. I stayed quiet. Wait a minute, why the hell was I staying so quiet, I remember thinking. _I_ was usually the one doing all the talking. Had he forgotten that or something? But then I realized, that was a long time ago. And he changed, and so probably had I.

"Do you think about it?" I said suddenly, turning to him. "Do you think about that New Year's night often?" I kept my eyes steady, knowing. I wasn't sure what was going to come out of this. But I was just going along with this feeling, this soft, wispy feeling that was growing deep down inside.

"To be honest," he said, not tearing his eyes away from mine either, " not too much until recently." I smiled at that and turned away. His feet were softly grazing mine now, and a shock arched itself across my scalp.

_Bump, bump. _

"You know I was planning on doing something really cliché and witty for you. Something like throw a few pebbles at your window for some magical reunion." he smiled, turning away. "But I thought that you might have gotten mad or something. You never liked that kind of stuff, did you?"

I thought for a moment, smiling to myself. "In that case, a lot of things have changed, huh?" I said, repeating his earlier question. He only laughed at this. "I'm a harmonious teenage, sappy girl now, Sora. How could you think I wouldn't enjoy that?"

He smiled up at the sky, "Then in that case, things _have_ changed. Because now _I_ believe that you no longer have cuties and I rather like girls."

"Oh, then I guess you're not gay anymore." I said laughing. He grinned stupidly.

"Quite the opposite, in fact."

"Really?"

"Really."

"Well I always thought you had the hots for a few of those boys in the locker rooms." I continued, playing around with him, my feet caressing his.

"Actually, I had the hots for _you_. Not some stupid elementary boys." he said with a lightness in his voice. I turned to him and locked our gazes. My stomach was in knots.

_Bump, bump. _

"Oh?" I said daringly, smiling a sly smile for him. He returned it just as flirtatiously.

"I still do." Sora finished, staring deep into my eyes.

_Bump, bump. Bump, bump. Bump, bump. _

Before I knew it, before I could even tell what was happening, he kissed me. The butterflies in my stomach seemed to zoom in adrenaline delight, making my short breath catch in my throat and hairs in the back of my head stand up. I got Goosebumps as his hands found its way to my face, pulling me closer by our flaming lips. I had died and risen again, and if he kept this up, I wouldn't make it too much longer. Trying very hard to stay close to him with the weight of the swings between us, I linked my hands with his as our fingers knitted together. I couldn't breath, I couldn't do anything. There was just this ginger daze clouding my mind, not letting me interpret anything going on around me. All I could feel, other than the heat in my face and warmth of his fingers, were the heat and sweet, sweet taste of his lips. And nothing else. Because I was dreaming for a while without even knowing it, and it was finally coming true.

Soon, a daze clouded my mind. I didn't realize it would stay for any amount of time.

_Bump._

-

Time seemed to zoom into overdrive after that day. Sora soon became my boyfriend, and I couldn't seem to get my teenage mind off of him. My grades had gone down and I occasionally skipped school just so I could be with Sora. But I didn't care. I was enveloped in him, he became my life. And I became his. He would pick me up everyday after school to take me somewhere, and would drop me off right on the dot for dinner curfew. Talking to him for a few hours later, I would finally go to sleep only so I could wake up and wait for him to take me to school. It was a fantasy in my mind, and I couldn't quite surface to reality.

A few months later, it was in the middle of autumn, and our passion didn't seem to slow down. He took me out one day to ride around the town. Everything was orange, I remember. Radiant Garden didn't have to coldest or longest winter in the world, but their falls were absolutely fantastic. I remember smiling as I looked out of Sora's black Land Rover at the kids jumping around in the leaves. Sora was holding my hand expertly as he drove while tracing his thumb up and down my hand; triggering an inward buzz to ease its way all across my body.

"Lets go to the park." he had said light-heartedly that day, smiling to me at the side as the blindingly cool sun cast a shadow across his face, just like the first time I'd ever met him. I nodded numbly at him, and he smiled brilliantly at me.

He seemed to have some kind of control over me, like every word he said would just cool me down and keep me mellow. He was like a drug, and I was quickly becoming an addict.

He pulled into the park and quickly came around to open the door for me. Before I could even take a step out, he picked me up bridal style and shut the door with his back. I shrieked into his hot neck as I wrapped my arms around it.

"Soraaa! Put me down!" I cried, my breath against his bare neck skin. I pulled away lightly and saw a few rows of goose bumps rise in the spot. And I smiled, because I had some kind of power over him, too.

"Not until…" he said, pondering, and then looked down at me expectantly, "you give me a kiss." I laughed up at him and smiled quietly.

"Then I'll never kiss you again." I said, giggling up at him.

"Then that's your choice." Sora said, continuing to smile. He continued to carry me over to the castle-like play area.

"Okay, Sora, you really need to put me down. You're pissing me off."

He began to laugh. "I told you, not until you kiss me." Climbing up the stair-like structure, he sat down on the ground of the jungle gym. It was a small private area that we usually spent our time together. It was right by the tunneled slide and we were hidden from view.

"You're so difficult…" I mumbled, giving up, and reaching up to give him a long peck on his lips. He smiled into the kiss and pulled back. "Thank you."

"You're not welcome." I said stubbornly, re-adjusting myself on the floor so that I was sitting between his legs with my back to his chest. "Bribing your girlfriend for a kiss? That's a little pathetic, Sora." I said snuggling up against him.

"Yeah, well, I enjoy it." he murmured, nuzzling his nose into the side my neck and the back of my ear. I closed my eyes and soaked in this moment, hoping that it would last forever.

-

_umm...if you gonna fave or alert this story, please, please, please REVIEW. as much as i appreciate them, ive been getting wayy too many faves, and scandalously low amount of review compared to that. so please, if you feel necessary, **FAVE AND REVIEW. **or else, i honestly, honestly will not have the will power to finish this quickly. :(_

_oh, and just for shits and giggles, i was actually planning on posting this last Valentine's Day. aha. i am a little late._

_NOTE ABOVE PLEASE, and thanks so much in advance for any recognition you give me! i love all of it._

_In case anyone picked up on it, there were Romeo + Juliet cameos in the summary...looks like you'll just have to keep reading._


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